The Washington times., 1922-08-15

ION j. COUNCIL
| FOR CAT HOL|CS
Vatican Will Soon Issue Order
Clarifying Attitude on
Its Activities.
BY WILLIAM HARD,
Cosmspolitan News Service.

Cosmopolitan News Service.
Pope Plus xI will presently pub
lish an order confirming the organi.
zation of the National Catholic Wei.
fare Council In Washington and
bringing to an end all rumors re-
garding papal displeasure directed
against the progressive work accom-
plished in the field Of labor affairs
In America by the councils depart
ment Of social action"
The rumors In question emanated
from Rome itself and were widely
printed. They were several times con.
tradicted, nevertheless. in the Wash.
ington dispatches Of this service on
the rbasis of additional information.
That information Is now corroborated
and It may be stated now with abso-
lutte certainty that the order about
to be issued by the Pope, instead OF
condemning the National Catholic
Welfare Council, will authorize its
continued existence and activity.
Reason Is Revealed.
Archbishop Boeller, OF Cincinnati,
returning from Rome, has revealed
part Of the reason why certain
misapprehensions arose. This rea-
son can now be printed.
1t Is true that an order was pre-
pared which was hostile to ethe Ma
tionai Catholic Welfare Council.
This order. however. went to the
Pope as part Of daily routine and
was not recognized by him as being
a matter OF more than formal i'm
portance. The existence Of the or
der became known and was cabled
to America. But at that very mo-
ment the Pope had learned what
the meaning Of the order really was
and had stopped its publication in
the official papal statute book called
the 'Acta Apostolicae Sedis."
TIL published there, II was not a
binding order. Meanwhile numerous
bishops in the United States had
preceived that misapprehensions had
arisen. All American Roman Catholic
bishops are members Of the National
Catholic Walfare Council. Certain
Of them proceeded at once to Rome.
They found in the Pope no disposi-
ton whatsoever to quarrel with the
activities undertaken by the Roman
Catholics bishops in the United
States through the agency Of tho
National Catholic Welfare Council.
Nor did they find In him any disposi.
ton to quarrel with the opinions ex-
pressed by the bishops regarding
labor affairs and regarding the need
Of social reconstruction" IN modern
industrial life.
The. status OF the National Cath
ole Welfare Council" says Arch.
bishop Moeller, remains unchanged
and the council will r.cet in Wash
ington as usual In September"
Approve Of Policy.
The text of the papal order accom-.
plishing this result has not yet been
divulged, but Archbishop Moeller's
interview leaves no doubt as to it's
character.
The fact Is that the matter of the
progressive economic views Of the
Roman Catholic bishops of the
United States, as expressed through
the National Catholic Welfare Coun.
Gil, was never at any moment the
genuine reason for. whatever efforts
were put forth against the council
in the anterooms Of the Vatican.
The genuine reason had to do with
other matters entirely.
Even that reason did not get very
far and today's situation is that
clouds over the council are def.
stood that the economic views ex.
pressed by the council are simply
It's own views: but 1t Is to be
equally understood that those views,
which have made so much stir, are
not condemned by the Pope and
will continue to be expressed by
the bishops II the bishops choose
to do SO.
In other words, as a priest with
q keen sense Of humor put It today:
"It is found that the bishops .S
a body are orthodox-which a.
WAYS suspected."