What was in the news on July 7, 1961? Pope speaks of unity, Serrans urged to seek social justices and bishops defend Protestant ministers

By Brandon A. Evans

This week, we continue to examine what was going on in the Church and the world 50 years ago as seen through the pages of The Criterion, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Here are some of the items found in the July 7, 1961, issue of The Criterion:

• Believes Court would back aid to build Church schools
• Pope speaks of unity and the Council
  • “VATICAN CITY—His Holiness Pope John XXIII stated here that an understanding of the Church’s universality will give people a greater appreciation of the exceptional importance of the coming ecumenical council. … The goal of Christian unity, the pope said, must remain intact no matter how seemingly great the obstacles or how distant its realization in time. … ‘The ecumenical council will reach out and embrace under the widespread wings of the Catholic Church the entire heredity of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Its principal task will be concerned with the condition and modernization of the Church after 20 centuries of life. May it be that side by side with this, God will add also, through whatever edification we may offer, but above all by merit of the omnipotence of the Most High who can draw new chosen sons from the very stones, one other result: a movement toward recomposition of the whole Mystical Flock of Our Lord.’ ”
• Franciscans prepare for educational TV
• Two outdoor novenas to open July 8
• Endorsement by Kennedy seen likely
• Seek social justices, Serrans are urged
• Catholics cautioned about use of pressure
• Council of Churches acts to block school loan plan
• Catholic bishops defend ministers
  • “ST. PAUL, Minn.—Two Catholic bishops publicly disputed a charge that Protestant ministers form ‘the largest single body’ of communists in this country. The charge was made by Robert Welch, head of the John Birch Society.”
• The liturgy, the laity and Christian unity
• Government censorship is thorny issue in Spain
• Bishop sees little hope for corporate reunion
• Family Clinic: Church’s stand on long engagements
• Montreal priests doff cassocks
• Enough to make a Red cry
• English nuns may go on strike
• German Catholics helped Jews during Nazi purge
• Priest sentenced in Czechoslovakia
• Pays visit to Orthodox Patriarch
• New chaplain named for Moscow Catholics
• In line to head Cuban schismatics
• Clergy education in music pushed
• Netherlands Catholics in the majority
• Archbishop [Schulte] to give law awards Sunday
• Share the land, Spaniards urged

(Read all of these stories from our June 30, 1961, issue by logging on to our special archives.) †