35ortl) Carolina Catijoltc
Edition of Our Sunday Visitor Volume LVI December 10, 1967 No. 32 P.O. Box 9503
Subscription $4.00 10< per copy RALEIGH, N.C.
Prelate Dies at 78
Cardinal Spellman Called
Symbol of Church in U.S.
New York — (NC) — Francis
Cardinal Spellman of New York
died (Dec. 2) at St. Vincent Hos
pital and Medical Center at 11:45
a.m. as the result of a massive
cerebral accident.
He had been taken to the hos
pital at 10 a.m., immediately aft
er members of his household dis
covered his condition.
On Nov. 14 the cardinal, who
had been attending the annual
fall meeting of the U.S. bishops
in Washington, was admitted to
the Cleveland Clinic for “diag
nostic studies.” Upon his release
on Nov. 22 it was said that the
prelate was in good health.
At the time of his death, Car
dinal Spellman was spiritual
head of two of the world’s most
populous Sees — the New York
archdiocese with 1.8 million
Catholics and the U.S. military
ordinariate with some two mil
lion Catholics. He was 78 years
of age and had been a priest for
51 years, a bishop for 35 years,
and a cardinal for 21 years.
FOK MANY Americans, Car
dinal Spellman was a symbol of
the Catholic Church. He had been
a dominant figure on the Ameri
can scene for more than a quar
ter of a century. A friend and
confidant of popes and presi
dents, his statements on commu
nism and education won head
lines throughout the world.
He travelled hundreds of thou
sands of miles, many of them as
military vicar of the U.S. armed
forces. His annual Christmas vis
its to U.S. servicemen at farflung
posts around the world became
an institution. His 16th consecu
tive Christmas trip and last such
visit was made to South Vietnam
in 1966 when he stirred world
wide controversy with his de
Editor's
Desk
Within 10 days, Father Paul
G. Termer, a priest of the dio
cese, will observe the 50th year
of his ordination to the priest
hood.
The 83-year-old priest was or
dained in Mary Help of Chris
tians Cathedral at Belmont Ab
bey on Dec. 21, 1917 by the Rt.
Rev. Leo Haid, O.S.B., Vicar
Apostolic of North Carolina and
Abbot-Ordinary of Belmont Ab
bey. Father Termer was ordained
for the secular priesthood of the
Vicariate and served here in par
ishes throughout the Diocese.
Father Termer’s first pastorate
was in Hamlet where he built
the present combination church
and rectory. Later assignments
took him to Hendersonville, Hen
derson, two appointments to Mt.
Airy separated by a chaplaincy
at St. Joseph’s Hospital at Ashe
ville and a final pastorate at
Sanford, from which he retired
in 1959.
For a period of about two
ears he was in residence at the
ectory at Newton Grove.. It was
luring this period of association
th him that we made a friend
ip and enjoyed his compan
there.
FATHER THEN left for his
itive city of Buffalo to reside
his family. He has a cousin
is a pastor in that diocese
id who affords him the oppor
ity of offering Holy Mass and
g in the administration of
Sacraments when he is able
do so.
wish Father Termer good
and happiness and pray
i blessing and consolation
>od spirits on the long years
s priesthood. His friends in
diocese may express their
itions to him at 540
rt St, Buffalo, N.Y. 14215.
graduate of St Francis Col
in Milwaukee, Father Ter
became interested in study
for the Vicariate of North
>lina through a friendship of
late Msgr. Michael A. Irwin,
had a brother living in Buf
iS A SEMINARIAN he spent
ation periods with Msgr. Ir
Editor’s Desk, page 5A
St. Mary's College
Affirms Autonomy
Notre Dame, Ind. — (NC) —
The new board of trustees of St.
Mary’s College passed -a resolu
tion (Dec. 3) which rejected an
outright merger with neighboring
Notre Dame University.
The resolution, already ap
proved by Notre Dame’s trustees
and faculty, says that the two
schools will remain “autonomous
but cooperating institutions.”
Despite the action, St. Mary’s
College president Sister Mary
Grace charged that the schools
intend an arrangement which is
much closer to merger than to
autonomy.
She also objected that the
board — five nuns, two priests
and five laymen — was not con
stituted according to the college’s
statutes. She hinted that some
alumnae might file suit challeng
ing the board’s action.
At the same time, the board
elected Mother Olivette, Superior
of the Sisters of the Holy Cross,
who own the college, president of
the board and Sister Gerald,
treasurer of the Order, as secre
tary.
Sister Mary Grace charged that
this action maintains control of
the college “in the hands of the
religious group. This is not in
line with modern trends in Catho
lic higher education.”
She noted that Notre Dame and
St. Louis University, both of
which recently reorganized, elect
ed laymen to head their trustee
boards.
ADVENT
Anxiously am I
awaiting the Lord,
expecting God,
my Savior +
Vietnam Mourns
Cardinal's Death
Saigon — (NC) — Francis
Cardinal Spellman of New York
is mourned in Vietnam, one of
the many countries with first
hand knowledge of his kindness
and constancy.
President Nguyen Van Thieu
has cabled Pope Paul VI expres
sing his “great sorrow” on learn
ing of the cardinal’s death.
“Cardinal Spellman was a great
defender of the Faith and of free
dom” President Thieu said. “He
won the hearts, the admiration
and the affection of the Vietna
mese, who had the happiness of
either close or distant acquaint
ance with him. They join me in
offering most sincere condo
lences to Your Holiness on this
sad occasion.”
President Thieu expressed his
“profound regret” also in a mes
sage to U.S. Ambassador Ells
worth C. Bunker.
“His Eminence Cardinal Spell
man was not only a great spir
itual leader but also a staunch
champion of freedom,” the Pres
ident said. “He was deeply at
tached to brotherly love among
all men and the ideal of peace
on earth. However, he fully
realized that such ideals can be
achieved only if freedom is un
failingly defended against the
forces of evil.
“He was also a true and great
friend of Vietnam. And Vietna
mese of all faiths remember with
See Vietnam, page 4A
fense of United States policy in
Southeast Asia.
On Christmas Eve in Tan Son
Nhut, the cardinal said that
“anything less than victory is in
conceivable.” The statement
caused worldwide reaction.
ON HIS RETURN to New York
Cardinal Spellman amplified the
statement, saying of the U.S.
troops he was backing: “Victory
in their eyes does not mean
wholesale slaughter or crushing
of their enemies. Nor does it
mean the conquest of North Viet
nam. It means rather convinc
ing the enemy to come to the
conference table ready to work
out a just and honorable solu
tion.”
As recently as September, Car
dinal Spellman defended his Vi
etnam views saying that he real
ized he was being labelled a
“hawk” because of his state
ments and his visits to the troops
but that such reaction did not
worry him. “I really don’t care
what I am called,” he said, “be
cause I believe in ministering to
the spiritual needs of these men
and women.”
Becoming embroiled m politi
cal debates and ministering to
servicemen were only two of the
many roles he played. He also
became noted as journalist, dip
lomat, translator and pilot dur
ing the busy life which began
in the small town of Whitman,
Mass. He was bom there on May
4, 1889, the son of Ellen (Con
way) and William Spellman, a
grocer.
HE SPENT his youth in his
home town where he attended
the public grammar school and
Whitman High School. He was a
good student and athlete. To
earn pocket money he helped his
father in the family grocery
store and delivered newspapers.
In September, 1907, he entered
Fordham University and distin
guished himself there for his ac
ademic record, work on college
publications and in debating,
and as second baseman for the
college team. Shortly before
his graduation he left to enter
the priesthood and was sent to
Rome for his theological studies
by William Cardinal O’Connell
of Boston.
Father Spellman was ordained
in Rome on May 14, 1916, and
a month later was awarded a
doctorate in theology from the
Urban College, run by the Con
gregation for the Propagation of
the Faith.
HIS FIRST assignment was as
an assistant at All Saints church
in Boston. He served in the Bos
ton archdiocese until 1925 hold
ing posts including assistant
chancellor and editor of The
Pilot, archdiocesan newspaper.
In 1925 Pope Pius XI named
the young Father Spellman to a
post in the Vatican Secretariat of
State. He was the first Ameri
can priest to hold such a posi
honorary degrees from public
See Cardinal, page 5A
Catholic Historical Society Picks Officers
New Bern — At the second
meeting of the board of di
rectors of the Catholic Historical
Society of North Carolina, the
Very Rev. Charles J. O’Connor of
Raleigh was elected president.
Charles H. Bowman Jr., of the
Department of Continuing Edu
cation at East Carolina University,
Greenville, was named first vice
president; Miss Mary Virginia
Horne of Wadesboro, second vice
president; William H. O’Shea,
Wake County librarian, treas
urer, and Mrs. W. Bruce
Stephens, research associate,
U.N.C. of Chapel Hill, treasurer.
The election of officers in
augurates officially the Catholic
Historical Society. The meeting
was held in the historic home of
Mrs. John A. Shields here, on
Nov. 30. She is a board member
and State Regent of the Catholic
Daughters of America.
LOUIS K. NEWTON, attorney
of Wilmington, was authorized
to file articles of incorporation.
A statement of purpose and
by-laws for the organization
were presented by Mr. Newton,
also a board member in behalf
of his committee which included
Albert J. Ellis, attorney and
State legislator of Jacksonville,
and Mrs. Julian Hoffman of
Roanoke Rapids. Both were
unanimously adopted by the
board.
In its broad aims, the Histo
rical Society seeks “to discover,
publicize, preserve and restore
contributions made by Roman
Catholic persons or groups and
the Roman Catholic Church itself
to the development of this State,
its history and culture.”
CONTINUING THE theme,
the society offers to “cooperate
with existing historical groups
and its membership shall not be
limited to residents of North
Carolina, nor to Catholics. It will,
insofar as its resources permit,
publicize its work and its goals
in order to develop interest in
its activities and in the contri
butions Catholics have made to
the history of this State.”
The organizational aims of the
society are to “encourage forma
tion of local chapters to further
its aims and to aid in the dis
covery of objects worthy of
study, preservation and restora
tion. It will organize itself suf
ficiently, and make appropriate
See Officers, page 8A